Building a New Life
by randomplotbunny
Summary: The Shire is gone and Belladonna needs a safe place to settle her people. Why not Erebor? Bilbo/Smaug friendship, could be preslash if you want it to be.


**Disclaimer: I own nothing recognizable here! I'm just playing with the characters while bored...**

The Shire was gone and the Hobbits- those that had survived anyway- were made homeless wanderers.

The transition had been quick, just a matter of weeks really: a harsh winter, Orc riders and wolves swarming over the frozen river and a lack of aid or sympathy from their neighbors had done all the work of decimating their way of life.

The Men said that the winter was a bad for them too, and then they went off and rested by their warm hearths.

The Dwarves refused to even listen, saying that they had enough trouble settling their own people and could not be bothered to aid Hobbits that had been too foolish to guard their own borders.

The Elves gave them some little food and medicine, but turned them away at their borders, crying that there were too many and they could not accommodate them all.(When Elrond returned from his visit to Lothorien and heard what had been done in his name the offending Elf lost his position and his head, in that order.)

In less than a month the Shire was lost to memory, along with over half of its population.

Of those who survived long enough to run, those that had realized that running was the only option left open to them, only a few knew anything about surviving the wilds; and of those that knew how to survive only one stepped forward to take charge, to take the responsibility of leading their lost people to a new and safe haven.

Belladonna Baggins né Took- Bella to her friends- oldest living child of the late Thrain, recently wed to Bungo Baggins, head of the Baggins family; became the only source of light, of hope, for her people as she took charge and saw to their care.

And she led them.

She led her people out of the cruel winter, she led them over mountains and she led them away from a kindly West that was no longer kind to them and into the long forgotten East.

She led them to a Lonely Mountain.

She led them to a Dragon...

Months had passed, months of hard travel and the loss of more precious lives, before they reached the Mountain. Months during which Bella found herself to be pregnant.

Taking one last look at her people- her kin and her friends and even those she had never met before any of this happened- she let her gaze linger a moment over her husband- Bungo had proven his organizational skills in making sure everyone, especially the younglings, all received their allotment of hard rations and kindling- and then she turned determinedly towards the Gates of the lost Dwarven kingdom that now housed a Dragon and made her way inside.

Why would she endanger the last few survivors of her people by bearding a Dragon in its lair and asking for its protection and aid, you ask? The answer was simply yet it was not.

First the simple answer: logic. No other being on Middle Earth would help them- even Gandalf had not rushed to their aid when Bella sent word to him, though that had been understandable as he was a hard one to track down- and so they had nothing to lose by trying.

Second the not-so-simple answer: it felt right. She couldn't explain it but she just KNEW that Smaug could help them, and her instinct had never led her wrong before. She just had to be strong.

Inside the mountain she was nearly overwhelmed- It was so big!- but she searched until her feet ached, and then searched some more. She wandered until she came to the hall of treasures, and there she met the one she had searched for.

"Thief... Finally found your way down here, have you? Well... come forward and claim your reward for you persistence, and then I shall go out and share your reward with the vermin upon my Mountain you brought with you!" The voice was large but the body behind it even larger, and Bella froze for a moment in wonder and fear before regathering her courage and addressing the half enraged Dragon.

"O Smaug the magnificent, I have not come for your gold and jewels, nor have my people. We have come to beg for your help, and, if you are willing, your protection." The Mountain seemed to shake around her as he laughed at her plea.

"My protection? My help?! You are either a very good liar or an incredibly foolish creäture." As Smaug laughed at her again she took a daring step closer, needing to prove her sincerity.

"O Great Smaug, do not laugh at me for my request is a true one. My peoples' home, the Shire, is gone, taken by darkness and death, we were turned away by our neighbors- those we had thought would always be there for us as we had been there for them- and now we come to you, our last hope, to ask for a place to make a new home. One that will not be so easily destroyed." Eyes the size of her head stared at her before lowering down closer to her level.

"Let's say that I believe your story, little thief, what would I gain from such an arrangement? What riches could your lost people offer me in compensation for your presence?" Gathering herself, this would perhaps be the hardest part of her negotiations, Bella pulled from her pocket the only treasure a Hobbit would ever covet.

"Seeds? You would buy my protection with seeds?" It seemed Smaug was caught between laughter and anger at her offer.

"My race call themselves Hobbits, and we have no use for gold, gems or other things the other races consider to be precious. Hobbits only covet good food, family and growing things. All we can offer you in return for your help is to make your Mountain bloom, we can make it beautiful and green." The Dragon was closely regarding her now, and the gleam in his eye was not one she liked.

"There is something else you carry that you could offer me." Bella just looked blankly up at the beast in bewilderment, she carried nothing else and the Dragon's sly tone was most disconcerting.

"Your child..." She placed a hand on her belly and stepped back, truly frightened for the first time since entering the mountain.

"You can offer me your child and I will consider your request." Bella was shaking her head even as she backed up further, only to be stopped by a massive tail snaking around behind her.

"No." She said while staring defiantly into Smaug's eye, arms wrapped protectively over her barely rounded belly.

"It could be your only chance to save your people from my wrath, to save them at all." Stepping forward Bella met the Dragon's eye full on, with no hesitation and with no fear.

"I would not trade my child, nor anyone elses, even for the restoration of the Shire! You can just flame me now and be done with it if you think I would do any different!" Instead of the angry retort she expected, or even the flame she had asked for, Smaug simply chuckled.

"That is perfect, a perfect response any Dragon would give. I approve." Bella just gaped.

"I am no Dragon..." She trailed off as Smaug brought his great head closer to her.

"In all but body you are. Your spirit is that of a Dragons- fiercely protective, fearless, bold- it is something I have not seen in a very long time." He backed off, moving deeper into his hoard filled hall and off into the shadows.

"Tell your people that they can stay so long as they do not disturb me." His voice echoed back to her and Bella stared in shock until the Dragon was conpletely out of sight, only then did she come back to herself.

"Thank you, O Smaug the Greatest of all Dragons, for your kind generosity." A chuckle was her only acknowledgement and she turned to go, she had to tell her people the good news.

They had a home again- for now.

HOBBITHOBBITHOBBITHOBBITHOBBIT

Bilbo Baggins, son of Bungo Baggins and the Thrain Belladonna Baggins né Took, ran through the halls of Erebor with tears in his eyes that he tried to hide.

He was twenty-four years old- Nearly grown!- and he did not cry over something as petty as words he knew couldn't be true!

"Smaug!" He cried out as he skidded through a sea of gold and knocked over chestfuls of gems.

"What is it, Bilbo? You are making enough noise to shake the very foundations." The Dragon said, coming up behind the tween a silently as a shadow.

Bilbo turned and threw himself across the Dragon's snout, chest heaving and sobs catching in his throat.

"Smaug!" He gasped out as he tried to calm himself, comforted by the Dragon's mere presence.

Bilbo had not yet celebrated his eighth birthday before he had first taken to exploring the great halls of Erebor, a place no other faunt- or grown Hobbit for that matter- would go into.

His first meeting with the Dragon Smaug had been unexpected but highly anticipated.

Bilbo had found the treasury and had been looking over some of the items therein when a voice behind him made him jump.

_"Hobbit, I thought everyone was to be told not to come in here." Bilbo turned and then squealed with delight._

_"Dragon! Pretty Dragon Smaug! Can I ride on your back? Will you take me flying?" Smaug had been taken aback by this reaction, and, once Bella ran in and made proper introductions while trying to scold Bilbo for running off at the same time, a friendship had been quickly formed out of mutual curiosity._

_Smaug would tell the faunt about the things and peoples he had seen, or destroyed, and Bilbo would sing to Smaug Hobbit songs and regale him with their history. _

_The Dragon had greatly enjoyed the songs the faunts had made up about him and would encourage Bilbo to sing 'Smaug, the Magic Dragon' as often as possible._

"My dear Bilbo..." The Dragon crooned in comfort as Bilbo finally started to settle. With one last sniffle the tween managed to lift his head.

"It's not true, is it?" He squeaked out, surprising himself as that had not been what he'd meant to say.

"You will have to tell me more as I can not read minds." The Dragon soothed even as he felt his anger building at whoever had upset his little Hobbit.

"Mother's Wizard friend Gandalf came today, he said that we had to leave here. He said you weren't really our friend! That you were only pretending to protect us and will turn on us!" The young Hobbit nearly broke down again just thinking about it.

Smaug huffed while thinking of toasting all Wizards for their interfering ways.

"I have no intention of doing you or any Hobbit harm, you have all proven to be uncaring about my gold and so I do not mind your presence any longer." It was true, no Hobbit was interested in his hoard. The only one to show interest was Bilbo, but that was always in the line of grabbing a piece of it and placing somewhere on Smaug with an exclamation of 'It suits you so well!'.

"Do you mean it?" He saw he would need to do something to prove himself to his young Hobbit friend, so Smaug nodded and then started for the Gates.

"Shall we go and clear this up with this Gandalf person?" Bilbo stared in a daze before nodding in full agreement and skipping off ahead.

In all the years Hobbits had been there Smaug had never stepped outside the mountain before and Bilbo was hopping with excitement now that he would finally be able to introduce his friend to everyone.

Smaug rolled his eyes as he stepped out into the sunlight for the first time in decades and prepared himself to face a Wizard down with words instead of fire.

The things he did for these Hobbits, he mused, and one Hobbit in particular.

"Can you come to our Smial while you're out here? You won't be able to get inside but you can see in the widows. Everyone is going to be so jealous of me once they see you!" The young Baggins continued to chatter on as they made their way the first settlement the adults had created upon their arrival, Dragonsburrow, and Bilbo's home there.

It was a pleasant walk, even though they were drawing a crowd of spectators, and both parties thought that it would be nice to do it again sometime. It was only as Belladonna came rushing up to simultaneously greet Smaug and scold Bilbo that their peace was broken.

And then Gandalf strode forth...

)

_AN: Yeah, sorry, I know some of you hate endings like this- to be honest I do too- but I just couldn't help it as this is where the story chose to cut off._

_Maybe someone out there can think up a different ending? I'd be glad to let whoever wants to do so run with this idea. Just give me a PM so that I can check the story out when you write it as I'd love to see what direction you take this idea. :-) _


End file.
